Volcanoes
Sicilians may trust using the railways to visit Mount Etna but generally, trains are much better off if they’re out of a volcano’s reach.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Particularly, it is its ashes that can seriously disrupt a rail network, leading to poor visibility, health hazards and mechanical issues.
This was the case, for example in Japan in 2011, when parts of a rail route were shut down for over a week as ashes from an eruption caused a loss of electrical communication and mechanical failures.
Floods
In 2018 alone, floods were responsible for a staggering 109 disasters across the world, damaging tens of rail networks and, in the case of Turkey, even claiming the lives of those on-board.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataLast year, some 24 people died on a train headed to Istanbul after heavy rains eroded the ground beneath the tracks, derailing six carriages and causing the country’s worst rail disaster in recent years.
Turkey is now heavily investing in modernising equipment and tracks in order to prevent further natural catastrophes from causing more damage.
Hurricanes
Services were suspended on numerous railroads after Hurricane Florence hit the US states of North and South Carolina in September 2018.
Both passenger and freight routes were affected over the month the hurricane was raging in the US, forcing CSX Transportation to suspend services on major traits of its network.
With hurricanes and other natural events being a major concern in the US, both local and national governments are working to implement new resilience technologies and contain damages on rail networks and other transport methods.
Wildfires
With global temperatures in 2018 being the fourth warmest on record, it is no surprise that last year’s dry and hot summer led to a number of disastrous wildfires, which destroyed entire pieces of land across Australia, California and more.
Perhaps surprisingly, Scandinavian countries were amongst the most affected as a wave of wildfires spread across Sweden, where trains were either suspended or diverted for a few days.
Nevertheless, the industry is rushing to find solutions, with the EU’s RESIST project particularly standing out. Running between 2018 and 2021, the scheme will look at ways to ensure the continent’s transport routes improve at coping with extreme weather and unpredictable natural events.
Polar Vortex and freezing temperatures
In January 2019 the US was targeted by a polar vortex that froze rivers and forced people inside their homes. In particular, temperatures plummeted to a freezing -33°C in Chicago, endangering all modes of transportation and threatening to damage trains and the tracks they’re running on.
However, authorities found a curious, ingenious solution to the problem: using fire to melt away ice and snow at rail intersections, helping to restore operations.
Earthquake
It took New Zealand two long years to repair the damaged parts of a rail network on its South Island, which, back in 2016, was heavily shaken by an earthquake that killed two.
Both the country’s Main North railway line and routes covered by KiwiRail were consequently damaged and interrupted for two years, as landslides near the coast made parts of the rail tracks fall into the sea.
Freight trains were allowed back on the route in 2017, while the first passenger journey on the repaired network took place in November 2018 following an extensive clean-up operation.
